Idaho universities pushed to do more to prevent, respond to sexual assault

It’s not a statistic that parents want to hear as their kids are packing off for school: One in five women will be sexually assaulted during college, and it’s most likely to happen during their freshman or sophomore years.

That statistic, cited by a White House task force in its call for university reforms last year, generated some controversy. Critics pointed out that it came from a small study (just two universities) and one that used a broad definition of sexual assault, including forced kissing or fondling.

But this past spring, a nationwide poll of 1,000 students who attended college during the past four years found that 20 percent of women had been sexually assaulted, The Washington Post reported. The poll also found that 5 percent of men had been assaulted.

When it comes to sexual assault, federal officials want colleges to do better on all facets, from prevention to holding perpetrators accountable. The Sexual Violence Elimination Act, which took effect July 1, requires the schools to have prevention programs in place for students and employees, as well as clearly communicated protocols for handling sexual assault incidents.

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The Department of Education is investigating the handling of 145 sexual violence cases at 128 colleges and universities.

Boise State has been sued by a former student who claims the university mishandled her report of alleged sexual harassment and rape. Boise State is not under investigation by federal officials, but two other Idaho universities are.

The Department of Education’s Office of Civil Rights notified University of Idaho officials in April 2013 of a complaint filed in March 2013 alleging that the school did not adequately respond to a claim of sexual harassment and failed to provide a prompt and effective grievance procedure. On Wednesday, a university spokeswoman said it wouldn’t comment on the pending investigation.

Idaho State University is also facing an inquiry, according to a list of investigations updated July 29. ISU spokeswoman Adrienne King said state and federal law prohibit discussing specific cases. “We are cooperating fully with OCR in its investigation,” she said in a statement.

“ISU supports the government’s increased emphasis on preventing sexual misconduct on university and college campuses. We take all Title IX sexual misconduct complaints very seriously, thoroughly investigate them, and deliver a prompt and equitable resolution in accordance with the requirements of Title IX.”

Experts caution that these numbers don’t reflect the true scope of the problem, though. That’s due to the limitations of the data and many victims’ reluctance to report the crime.

The numbers that universities are required to report include incidents that happen on campus, adjacent properties and university-controlled properties — but they don’t include what occurs in houses or apartments a couple of blocks from campus, where many students live.

“The actual effect is going to be much larger than the numbers reflect. It allows people to downplay the problem,” said Annie Kerrick, an attorney hired by Boise State two years ago to be the Title IX coordinator in the Office of the Dean of Students.

Kerrick’s job is to ensure the university complies with state and federal regulations prohibiting unlawful discrimination and harassment. She previously served six years as the staff attorney at the Idaho Coalition Against Sexual and Domestic Violence.

In the vast majority of college sexual assault cases, the victim knows the perpetrator.

“Alcohol is the drug of choice to facilitate rape,” Kerrick said. “One party is often significantly more intoxicated than the other. ... It might be one person sitting there in a group setting, watching for that person getting to that level of intoxication.”

Universities that participate in federal student aid programs are required under the Clery Act to collect data on campus crime and make it available to the public.

Boise State’s campus crime log can be viewed online. Six years of information on reported crimes is available there, including date, location, police report numbers and whether the case has been resolved.

There’s one sexual assault listed on Boise State’s crime log this year. A third party reported an alleged rape on May 9, but the victim was “not desirous of prosecution,” the log says. Police investigations into sexual assaults are public record, but the reports released are heavily redacted to protect the privacy of alleged victims and assailants.

WHY SO UNDERREPORTED?

There are many reasons why college students don’t report incidents to university officials or police, experts say.

“Our biggest problem sometimes is we look at rape victims and we forget that their body is the crime scene,” said Jean Fisher, chief of the Ada County Prosecutor’s Special Crimes Unit. “It is their body. It is their soul.”

They’re traumatized.

They’re embarrassed.

They blame themselves.

They don’t want to submit to evidence collection from their own bodies.

They’re afraid of reprisal from the perpetrator or friends.

They don’t want their parents to know.

They don’t want it in their medical records.

They don’t want to testify in court.

They just want to forget it ever happened.

And that’s not all.

One Boise State University student told police that she didn’t initially report a 2011 sexual assault because she thought she’d get in trouble for being a minor and drinking alcohol at the party where she was attacked, according to the police report.

She told police she was at a party at a residence on Lincoln Avenue when she was grabbed from behind, dragged to an upstairs bathroom and raped.

“She told (the assailant) numerous times ‘no,’ and upon completion of the sexual intercourse, (the assailant) told (the victim) to put on her clothes, count to 100 and not to tell anyone,” the police report says.

The man told her he would tell everyone she was a slut if she told anyone about what happened. She told police she decided to come forward after a friend urged her to report it. When detectives with Special Victims Unit tried to reach her for a follow-up interview, she did not return calls. “Can re-open case if victim contacts this agency and wishes to pursue charges,” the report concludes.

In 4th District Court about a week ago, Judge Steven Hippler sharply questioned the attorneys hired by the state to represent Boise State in a former track student rape/sexual harassment case about why they had included the plaintiff’s sexual history — including names of her sexual partners — in a motion for summary judgment. The memorandum was part of the court file, which is public record.

“So because someone has consensual sexual relationships ... somehow they couldn’t have been the victim of a sexual assault?” said Hippler, indicating he believed the reason for including information about the student was designed “to embarrass, to humiliate and to intimidate” her. He directed the attorneys to resubmit the memorandum without the names and said he would seal the original memo.

Kevin Satterlee, Boise State’s general counsel, told the Statesman on Friday that university officials were appalled when they heard about the legal move by the state-hired attorneys. “That is so against anything we would do in defense of a case,” Satterlee said. “We’ll be sending them a message, telling them it was unacceptable and not representing us or our interests.”

The Ada County FACES Family Justice Center opened in 2006 to help make it easier for people to report and access services for domestic violence, sex crimes and child abuse. It’s a secure facility where evidence can be collected for rape kits and victims can meet with physicians, counselors, victim advocates, police, prosecutors and Legal Aid attorneys. The center served 1,300 people in 2014, Executive Director Rebecca Lovelace said.

Detectives with the Boise Police Special Victims Unit are based at the South 6th Street building, and so is Fisher, the prosecutor. The client meeting rooms offer softer furniture and a friendlier decor than you’d find at a hospital or police station.

“The challenge with rape — whether on college campuses or off — is having victims feel safe to report,” Ada County Prosecutor Jan Bennetts said.

FACES doesn’t keep statistics specifically on college students who come in for a sexual assault exam. But it does keep numbers by age group. Last year, 40 women ages 18 to 23 came in for exams. There were 59 exams for that age group in the first six months, an increase that officials say could be the result of a growing awareness of services.

When a student discloses a sexual assault to Boise State officials, the university does not report the crime to police. That decision is left to the victim, though the university does encourage reporting.

Kerrick said an exception to that rule is if there’s concern about a current threat to general public safety.

In December of last year, the university sent an email to students about a reported rape at Chaffee Hall. A description of the suspect was included, along with tips for staying safe.

In that case, a student reported that she was in a dorm bathroom at about 4:30 a.m. when an unknown man came in, pushed her into a shower stall and raped her, the police report says. Students have to swipe student ID cards to get into the locked bathrooms, but the door was propped open with tissue.

Police identified and interviewed the suspect, who was not a student at the university. He gave a very different account, saying the sexual contact was consensual.

In a later interview, the victim said she was unable to remember parts of that night and it was possible that some of what the alleged assailant said was true.

“She said that all she remembers is saying ‘no,’ ” the police report says. “She said that she did not want to accuse someone of something if she led them on and she did not want to abuse the criminal justice system.”

The investigation was forwarded to the Ada County Prosecutor’s Office, which did not bring charges because it did not believe the evidence was “beyond a reasonable doubt.”

Many universities have designated people for confidential reporting, allowing an assault survivor to get help without having to make a decision on notifying school authorities or the police. At Boise State, information shared by students is kept confidential. Also, university counseling and health services are confidential reporting sites.

“Confidentiality is so important,” said Adriane Bang, a licensed master social worker who is associate director of the Women’s Center at Boise State. “There has to be a safe place for people to go.”

TWO INVESTIGATIONS

Students accused of sexual assault might be subject to parallel investigations — one by the university, the other by police.

Kerrick conducts investigations at Boise State. She interviews both parties separately (they are allowed to bring an attorney or other support person with them), gathers facts and talks to witnesses, provides them both with an investigation report and gives them an opportunity to respond before making a decision on whether there was violation of university policy. If there was a violation, she makes recommendations to the associate dean of students on appropriate sanctions.

Universities don’t have to wait for the outcome of criminal investigations by police to take action and impose penalties. Their decisions are based on “a preponderance of evidence,” a much lower standard than used in the criminal justice system.

School officials try to move quickly to ensure that assault victims feel safe on campus. They may alter living arrangements and/or class schedules, impose a school-based no-contact order and have the accused removed from campus and/or expelled.

If the suspect is not a student, the university may issue a notice of exclusion so that the offending person could face a trespassing charge.

One of the recommendations of the White House task force last year was for universities to conduct climate surveys to get student input.

“When done right, these surveys can gauge the prevalence of sexual assault on campus, test students’ attitudes and awareness about the issue, and provide schools with an invaluable tool for crafting solutions,” the task force report says.

Boise State, the University of Idaho and The College of Idaho all plan climate surveys this year. Idaho State University officials are discussing the possibility.

The task force said sexual assault prevention education should be a top priority for universities. It launched a public awareness campaign called “It’s On Us,” and students across the country, including Idaho, have made videos encouraging their peers to be part of the solution.

The “It’s On Us” campaign is part of a broader push for “bystander intervention” training, which research has shown is effective in preventing sexual assault. Idaho universities also use “Bringing in the Bystander” and “ Green Dot” campaigns to teach students how to intervene.

Chris Wuthrich, dean of students at Boise State, said the university’s prevention education comes in different formats and settings, not just a one-time session at student orientation.

Boise State now requires students younger than 21 to do a two-hour online program called “Think About It.” The program features information, videos and quizzes about alcohol, drugs, consent, sexual violence and healthy relationships, Wuthrich said. The school can then gather information and educate students about what’s appropriate on campus.

The University of Idaho requires all new students to do the “Think About It” program. In the spring of this year, U of I launched a “Consent Campaign” to provide a “platform to help students discuss and understand what it means to consent to sex.”

Hailey Weatherby, a 21-year-old senior majoring in psychology, has been through the “Bringing in the Bystander” training three times at Boise State — in a sophomore class, as part of student government activities and as a peer mentor in the Honors College.

“Every time I went through it, something else popped for me,” said Weatherby, who is leading the university’s “It’s On Us” campaign for the second year.

Wuthrich said educating this generation of students is different because many young adults seem to lack basic social skills.

“Because they spend so much time online, they can’t read verbal and nonverbal cues,” Wuthrich said.

Concerned about confusion when it comes to sexual cues, at least two states — New York and California — passed “yes means yes” laws that require a clear affirmative agreement between sexual partners.